Drexciya Research Lab

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Meditation

The film maker David Lynch has been on a publicity drive in Europe of late to promote Transcendental Meditation to children. I had heard of this technique of relaxation and development before but went to his website to research his approach further. I was surprised to find that the phrase, ‘diving within’, is the keyword used in describing what you do when you practise it. I don’t think it’s coincidence that this same phrase is essentially what Drexciya were all about. You’ll understand why I’m reproducing Lynch’s message here if you’ve read and understood my interpretation of the Storm Series or any of the James Stinson quotes such as

“...all the records we’ve made give you clues, how to tap into your inner selves. We bring you right to that door and give you the key.”

(On Inspiration) “It came from deep inside my mind. God gave me this vision and I’m building on it, bringing it to life for the whole world to see."

and finally, again on inspiration he said,

"It comes from within our soul, from tapping into our subconscious during meditation.”

As ever, you make up your own mind from this information. I’m not saying anything as specific as that the members of Drexciya practiced TM at all, but if you want to go beyond the music and are looking for ways to socially evolve, then the following might provide some idea‘s for you and if not you should, if you have been reading DRL closely, at least recognise some very familiar sounding concepts about raising consciousness, which in my opinion run very much parallel to Drexciyan thought.

In fact I’ll give you one last quote for the doubters! I have yet to fully transcribe and archive the final interview James Stinson gave, which was to the Detroit radio station, but when asked to describe the Drexciya theme he paused to think and said, “An infinite journey to inner space, within and find out the beauty that’s inside.”

“In today’s world of fear and uncertainty, every child should have one class period a day to dive within himself and experience the field of silence—bliss—the enormous reservoir of energy and intelligence that is deep within all of us. This is the way to save the coming generation.” These words from the great educator and scientist of consciousness, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, simply and beautifully describe the urgent need in education today.

I have been “diving within” through the Transcendental Meditation technique for over 30 years. It has changed my life, my world. I am not alone. Millions of other people of all ages, religions, and walks of life practice the technique and enjoy incredible benefits.

Someday, hopefully very soon, “diving within” as a preparation for learning and as a tool for developing the creative potential of the mind will be a standard part of every school’s curriculum. The stresses of today’s world are taking an enormous toll on our children right now. There are hundreds of schools, with thousands of students, who are eager to relieve this stress and bring out the full potential of every student by providing this Consciousness-Based education today.

Our Foundation was established to ensure that any child in America who wants to learn and practice the Transcendental Meditation program can do so. The TM program is the most thoroughly researched and widely practiced program in the world for developing the full creative potential of the brain and mind, improving health, reducing stress, and improving academic outcomes. We provide scholarships for students to learn the technique and to receive the complete follow-up program of instruction throughout their student years to ensure they receive the maximum benefits. We also provide scholarships for students who want to attend the growing number of highly successful schools, colleges, and universities founded on this Consciousness-Based approach to education.

I have had the pleasure of meeting many students who are “diving within” and experiencing Consciousness-Based education. These students are all unique individuals, very much themselves. They are amazing, self-sufficient, wide-awake, energetic, blissful, creative, powerfully intelligent and peaceful human beings. Meeting these students, for me, was the proof that Consciousness-Based education is a profoundly good thing for our schools and for our world.Research and experience document the profound benefits to society as a whole when our children dive within. Individual peace is the unit of world peace. By offering Consciousness-Based education to the coming generation, we can promote a strong foundation for a healthy, harmonious, and peaceful world. For this, the Foundation also supports the establishment of Universities of World Peace that will train the coming generation in a new profession: that of professional peacemaker.

Thank you very much for your interest. And please remember that Consciousness-Based education is not a luxury. For our children who are growing up in a stressful, often frightening, crisis-ridden world, it is a necessity.”

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Black Amnesia?

I found an interview with the girl from Black Replica. It was done by the same guy that interviewed Heinrich Mueller some time ago about the Der Zyklus Biometry album. As my Polish is not great I'm not sure how long this interview has been up but the project is referred to as being called Black Amnesia, however the usual Black Replica MySpace link is given. Looks to me like the interview was done before they had begun their MySpace. Figure it out for yourself though I'm not sure yet. At least we have a lot more information about their motivation. To view original interview text go here,http://www.gaz-eta.vivo.pl/gaz-eta/recenzje/gazeta.php?nr=45&id=w_1

There's also a Heinrich Mueller mix to be found on the new Bochum Welt 10-inch on Rephlex. The track is Saint (Heinrich Mueller Z Version).

Dreams Versus Reality
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Heinrich Mueller, the man behind Dopplereffekt, Der Zyklus and Japanese Telekom works on another musical project. We were be able to talk about it with his new partner - Black Amnesia.
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Q:Where did you meet Heinrich Mueller?
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A:We met through his colleague, To Nhan Le Thi, who has been the closest friend to my soul for many years.
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Q:Why did you decide to cooperate with him?
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A:He is very intellectual, creative and likes the challenges these bring. He is also very forward thinking and I love his style of sounds. It came natural to cooperate. We both like each others theories.
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Q:What is your musical background?
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A:Singing and playing the drums.
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Q:What is the subject of your common project?
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A:The subject or concept of Black Amnesia is about the future of the human emotional state, the science and theory of it, dreams versus reality, the impending darkness of the future of the mind, and how we have to face this. Memories and history also play an important part, may we learn from them. Psychological.
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Q:What is your role in this project?
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A:Singing, lyrics and visual aspect.
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Q:What kind of music can we expect from both of you?
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A:Dark, cinematic electronic.
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Q:Have you already recorded any tracks?
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A:In the process.
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Q:How does your work look like?
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A:Classical futurism; dark with glimmers of light; emotional.
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Q:What is your opinion about Heinrich Mueller as an artist?
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A:I very much respect his musical compositions and theories - he truly expresses the notion of science through the music. He is well organized and conceptually sound.
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Q:When will we be able to listen to the results of your cooperation?
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A:In due time.
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PAWEL GZYL

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Ellen Gallagher - Coral Cities

I was very surprised to have a friend point out that Drexciya were the subject of a show entitled 'Coral Cities' ongoing at Dublin's Hugh Lane gallery. I did some research and found that the artist responsible, Ellen Gallagher, has been working on this series, 'Watery Ecstatic', for a number of years and that it has already been exhibited at Tate Liverpool. This is a very welcome and significant development which has no doubt already introduced a whole new audience to Drexciya and their idea‘s. I found the following texts which had this to say about her and her show...‘Ellen Gallagher was born in Providence, Rhode Island, in 1965, and lives and works in New York and Rotterdam, Holland. Her work first gained international attention at the Whitney Biennial in 1995. She has exhibited widely with recent solo exhibitions at the Freud Museum, London (2005), MoCA Museum of Contemporary Art, Miami (2005), the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York (2005) and was selected for the Italian Pavilion for the 50th Venice Biennale in 2003.’

‘Gallagher is best known for her paintings that rework advertisements for hair and skin products from popular magazines such as “Ebony”, “Our World” and “Sepia”, but also creates drawings, sculptures and films that explore issues of race, slavery and identity.’

‘Her current exhibition at the Liverpool Tate indeed showcases her recent works, and charts her ongoing exploration of the Drexciya Mythos and the Black Atlantis. The idea stems from the suggestion that amphibian descendents of African women and children inhabit the seas between Africa and the Americas, after many jumped overboard and plummeted to their deaths during the gruelling journey of the middle passage, rather than be sold as slaves in America. Gallagher’s interpretation of the amphibious creatures becomes the narrative of her work for this exhibition, and she presents the haunting images by many different means. This disconcerting tale has very much influenced her recent works, making them as haunting as they are beautiful.’‘The focal point of the exhibition, ‘Bird in Hand’ sees the most ambitious artistry of the Watery Ecstatic series, execute through careful use of oil, ink, cut paper, polymer medium, salt and gold leaf on canvas. The results are exceptional on an aesthetic level, and succeed in adding depth and meaning to the narrative and premise behind its creation. Gallagher effectively evokes the sea, and reveals the isolation and desperation of African slaves through a carefully crafted absence of companionship.’

‘Coral Cities features new and recent works and focuses on her ongoing series collectively entitled Watery Ecstatic, which explores the myth of Drexciya, a myth propagated by an underground Detroit techno outfit of the same name in the 1990s. An Atlantis-like underwater world, Drexciya is populated by a marine species descended from women and children who jumped overboard or were thrown from slave ships during the gruelling journey from West Africa to America. In this series of work their embryonic status is transformed into elaborate mythical figures, half human, half fish, and highly developed underwater species. Carving directly onto paper, elaborating with precise detail, and culling images from the 1930s through to the 1970s from publications such as Ebony and Sepia, Gallagher remixes representations of identity. The exhibition includes the epic painting Bird in Hand, representing a black sailor or pirate from Cape Verde, part tree, part root, whose head spawns a multitude of heads and text. As in other works historically specific cultural references are merged with Gallagher’s own personal biography as a black Irish-American woman. Gallagher revises and revisions the historic and fantastical to create a body of work that layers imageries and creates new cultural mythologies.’